Calf foetuses cloned from milk, claim scientists

Wednesday, 11 November 1998 ABC Online News

Japanese scientists claim to have cloned three calf foetuses from milk. The calves are due to be born in April at a laboratory in northern Japan.

Researchers extracted mammary gland cells from milk produced by a Holstein cow after it had given birth. The cells' nuclei were transplanted into unfertilized eggs and, after two months' cultivation, implanted into the wombs of the surrogate mother cows.

The achievement opens the way to cloning that does not harm the donor animals and which reduces the risks of bacterial infection.